General Bratishko removed from Operational Command Skhid, corps commander Nikoliuk to replace him

Major General Oleksandr Bratishko has been removed from his post as commander of Operational Command Skhid (East), and Major General Viktor Nikoliuk, commander of the 20th Army Corps, has been appointed as his replacement.

Source: Ukrainska Pravda sources in the defence forces

Details: Sources told Ukrainska Pravda that one of the reasons for Bratishko's dismissal, as in the case of the removal of 11th Corps commander Serhii Sirchenko, was the loss of Siversk in December 2025.

Bratishko has been replaced by Major General Viktor Nikoliuk who, Ukrainska Pravda has found, has established a strong record as commander of the 20th Corps.

For reference: Viktor Nikoliuk was born on 19 October 1975 in Kirovohrad Oblast. He graduated from the Kharkiv Guards Higher Tank Command School and the Ivan Cherniakhovskyi National Defence University of Ukraine.

He previously commanded the 92nd Separate Mechanised Brigade, the 169th Desna Training Centre and Operational Command Pivnich (North). At the start of the full-scale invasion, he led the defence of Chernihiv Oblast.

On 10 March 2022, Nikoliuk was awarded the title Hero of Ukraine. In March 2023, he was appointed commander of the Training Command of the Ukrainian Ground Forces.

In 2025, he replaced Brigadier General Oleksandr Tarnavskyi as commander of the Donetsk Operational Tactical Group. Following the transition of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to a corps-based structure, he took command of the 20th Army Corps.

Background:

• On 22 December, the 7th Air Assault Corps reported that Russian forces were attempting to move personnel across the Siverskyi Donets River, with the situation in Serebrianka described as extremely difficult.
• DeepState, a Ukrainian group of military analysts, reported that as of 22 December, Serebrianka was under Russian control, Siversk was partially occupied and most of the city was in the grey zone.
• On 25 December, Ukrainian forces withdrew from Siversk in Donetsk Oblast, citing the Russians' significant advantage in manpower and equipment and continued offensive operations.

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